(Uno) 1. New bedroom furniture!!! Hours spent assembling and arranging, photos this weekend. (All the while singing “Shake it off!” by Florence and the Machine.)

(Due) 2. Finding a hill routine for running in my neighborhood. It is just about perfect, it is about a half mile from the house (warm-up distance), with hill repeats about one-third mile long (great for running repeat with a rest period on the way down).

(Tre) 3. Oh yea – no work for Jilly today!

(Quattro) 4. Connecting with my Uncle Michael on his birfday – yep, 8:30am in Sicilia is only 11:30pm in Seattle (the night before today).

(Cinque) 5. Remembering Sicilian summers with pictures like these (taken in Cefalu):

Cento

Sempre Dicembre continues and my mood continues to soar, my waistline is hanging with me (despite a few extra desserts and glasses of wine each week), and most importantly, my energy level is staying high! I tend to celebrate the winter solstice so emphatically because I need the affirmation that More Sun Is Ahead! This time of year often finds me in the doldrums; while I feel them nipping at my heels this year, the Sempre Dicembre activity is creating a protective bubble around me – colds, flues and doldrums are not allowed! How do you keep the doldrums at bay?

4 responses to “Shake it off! Keeping the doldrums at bay…”

Hi Jill,
Merry Christmas. I send you best wishes for keeping those dd’s at bay. Take several deep breaths and think long about those and what you love. Repeat. Repeat. Take time to lay down outside in nature and breath deeply again for as long as you want. Repeat. Pet your kitten. Repeat. Hug Dave for a long time. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat.
I’m enjoying both my kids, the holidays, and thinking of you and Dave.
Susan